One of our strongest and most valued qualities is our collaborative and multidisciplinary approach to patient care.
Key points
- The ICU is governed by our senior leadership team
- Patient treatment and care is provided by a team of doctors, nurses and allied health professionals
- Specialist ICU doctors are primarily responsible for patient treatment plans
- CNCs are available to support patients and families 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
The ICU team includes highly skilled intensive care doctors, nurses, allied health, pharmacy, clerical, clinical assistants, cleaners and personal assistant staff. The entire multidisciplinary team work closely with all specialised medical and surgical units across the Parkville Precinct.
Senior leadership
One of our strongest and most valued qualities is our collaborative and multidisciplinary approach to patient care. The ICU Senior Leadership Team consists of senior ICU specialists and nursing leaders.
Doctors
Prof Chris MacIsaac leads our team of specialist ICU doctors (intensivists) who are primarily responsible for the treatment of patients in the ICU.
The ICU medical team generally do two formal ward rounds a day for each patient and more frequently review patients, perform procedures, respond to emergencies, and attend family meetings.
Nurses
Our ICU team includes Clinical Nurse Managers (CNMs), Associate Nurse Unit Managers (ANUMs), Clinical Nurse Consultants (CNCs) and critical care registered nurses (CCRNs) in ICU. This team is led by the Nurse Unit Manager (NUM) Joanne Forrest.
Each bedside nurse looks after either one or two patients (depending on level of care required), providing highly specialised care in line with the treatment plan formed during the ICU ward rounds. This includes taking blood for tests, monitoring vital signs, administering medications and running specialised life support machines.
Due to the complex care and close monitoring required in ICU, there is typically one nurse to one patient. This is different to other hospital wards.
ICU Clinical Nurse Consultants
The ICU Clinical Nurse Consultant (CNC) team provides a 24-hour critical care outreach service to all wards across the RMH. This service includes reviewing patients that have been previously discharged from ICU.
The CNC team triage calls from the RMH 1800 Worried service (1800 967 743). This service and responds appropriately to concerns about patient deterioration.
Allied health
The ICU has a broad team of allied health professionals who together help patients recover from illness, including:
- dietitians
- speech pathologists
- physiotherapists
Cultural and wellbeing support
To make sure we are providing the most appropriate care and support for our patients and their loved ones, we also work with:
- social workers
- LGBTIQA+ liaison officers
- First Nations Health Unit
- Spiritual care team
Social workers provide support to patients and families when they have a loved one in the ICU.
This can include counselling and emotional support or help to manage practical affairs while in ICU.
Our LGBTIQA+ Liaison Officers can provide cultural, emotional, social and clinical support to patients and families.
They have specialist knowledge in LGBTIQA+ health and welcome self-referrals from patients and their support people.
The RMH First Nations Hospital Liaison Officer (FNHLO) helps to provide culturally safe and appropriate care and service for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander patients.
The FNHLO acts as a cultural interpreter, consultant and advocate to help assess, plan, provide and coordinate best practice and patient care.
Spiritual Care upholds the importance of the holistic care of individuals by addressing the connections between physical, psychological and spiritual dimensions of wellbeing.
Reception team
Our reception team are the face of the ICU, greeting everyone who comes into the unit.
They play a vital role in:
- welcoming next of kin and family members when they arrive to the ICU
- connecting family members with their loved ones over the phone
- connecting family members with our CNC team